Running From Turtles
by shy1214
Summary: based loosely on the episode the trials of m kelso, but changed for it to be how I want it,
1. Chapter 1

A/N ok so bear with me because the thought process here is a little murky, the episode trials of m Kelso is the base for this but I had to change a lot around to make it fit, I know that I've done that, its intentional so suspension of continuity annoyance appreciated. The idea came from the scene in the breakfast club when they run from Vernon, that's it seriously, that made this idea pop in my head and now here we are! Yes, I'm glad too, anyway, let's go.

It had been a long day full of pointless conversations that didn't seem to go anywhere, so when fez angrily declared that he wanted revenge on the snapping turtles for what they did to him (and his ass) the six friends jumped at the chance to do something…anything else then what they had been doing.

On the ride over Kelso was acting strangely sullen, and after another stage sigh Hyde finally decided to ask what the hell his damn problem was?!

"you broke my egg!" Kelso whispered so Jackie, who rode up front wouldn't hear.

"you mean the egg you planned on throwing at someone after playing catch with it?" Hyde asked dryly

"yeah but, that was before I knew it was a test" Kelso defended

"Kelso man, the whole point of those tests was for her to see if you'd matured and changed for real, which you haven't" Hyde tried to explain to the man child pouting beside him.

"nah uh! Now that I know what's up I'm totally changed and mature!" Kelso declared

"dude, you failed every damn test until donna ratted her out! You lost her for cheating, what in your puny corn nut of a brain makes you think cheating on these tests is going to be the answer?" Hyde asked in an academically curious tone, he knew better than to sound like he gave a damn either way.

"cus now that I know she's testing me I can be different than I normally would be and get Jackie back, duh!" Kelso hissed

"did you hear a thing I just said?" Hyde asked curiously

"not really, Fleetwood mac was on the radio and I started thinking about what Stevie nicks looks like naked" Kelso explained unabashed as always for how sleazy he tended to be.

"whatever" Hyde sighed and did his best to ignore his friend for the rest of the drive.

He could have written a dissertation on all the reasons it would be hell if Jackie and Kelso got back together, but it wasn't his problem, and he intended to keep it that way. His quota of putting up with the relationship crap of his friends was well and met, and the only one that was allowed to talk to him about any problems pertaining to love lives was Forman, and that was just because he was basically Hyde's little brother, the others could fuck off.

They were almost done 'decorating' the rival school's gym, when they all stopped dead in their tracks and listened hard. There it was, the unmistakable sound of footsteps.

"I thought you said no one would be here!" donna hissed at Kelso

"they shouldn't be, school lets out at 3!" Kelso whispered back defensively

"there are still staff and after school clubs Kelso!" Eric told him irately

"really?" it was clear Kelso had no idea such a thing happened, as if in his brain once you weren't compelled to be at school the entire building was abandoned.

"well were screwed" Eric stated bluntly, however much they felt justified in their revenge for what had been done to Fez, they'd still committed trespassing and vandalism, which for a county as small as theirs, were a big deal.

Red was going to need extra feet for what he would do to them when the cops brought them home, and that was after the football team was done with them, as Jackie had just quietly informed them that it was most likely the snapping turtles themselves who were still at school since it was homecoming float time of year.

Hyde stepped forward and squared his shoulders "there's nothing else for it, were going to have to run for it" he told them seriously

"great plan Hyde, just book it through the halls and let them see us? No, we should sneak out of here and hide until they give up trying to find us and go home" donna said confident in her plan

"we'll be sitting duck that way pinciotti, it doesn't matter if they see us cus they don't know who we are and even if they track us down we'll be on our own turf by then" Hyde tried to make her see his reasoning, but as always, once donna decided she was right about something there was no convincing her otherwise.

"well for starters, shouldn't we at least get out of the locker room we just destroyed?" Eric asked nervously

"Forman's right, we'll decide where to go after we leave the scene of the crime" Hyde agreed with his best friend and decided to lead by example, and open the door.

Checking around carefully to see if the coast was clear he waved them to follow, they crept silently through the echoing halls until they were nearing a dead end where they'd have to choose either left or right to continue. Half way through another argument between Hyde and donna about the best course of action they heard voices yell out behind them.

"that's them! Get 'em!" they looked behind them and saw the defensive line of the varsity team barreling towards them, looking pissed.

"run!" Eric yelled in full panic and took off down the hall, the others right behind him.

"this way" called donna turning towards the left passage

"no way man, that's the main hall, we gotta go this way" Hyde argued urgently, sure that their only hope was the less popular classes, football players were usually too busy for electives and might not know their way around as well as they did areas where required courses were.

Donna ignored him and turned down the left hallway, while Hyde chose to trust his instincts as always and went right. He caught sight of Kelso, Fez and Forman following Donna and felt a pang of annoyance, just because you say something confidently, doesn't make it a good idea. He was torn between wanting to save his own skin and not wanting to abandon his friends to a definite beating, and was about to turn around and catch up with them when a voice at his elbow shocked him.

"don't slow down Steven, we need to hide!" Jackie squeaked in a terrified whisper, as a rival cheerleader she would be known to their pursuers and he didn't even want to think about the penalty they would assign to her if they caught her.

They rushed down the deserted hall, their shoes squeaking on the ugly tile floors as they dashed for safety. Hyde scanned classroom after classroom for a good place to wait out the guys chasing them, and finally saw a placard next to a door that felt right. Grabbing Jackie by the shoulder he pulled her into the empty room and carefully shut the door, he knew it would be a dead giveaway to lock it, so regretfully he left the bolt unfastened and turned to find a decent place to wait until they could escape.

A quick glance at the windows told him they were not an option, a few too many horny students breaking in for some privacy, had led the school to weld the frames so that they only opened about four inches, and even Jackie couldn't fit through a space that small.

"where are we?" Jackie asked in a voice so soft he was surprised it came from her.

"were in the drama club room" he told her with a smirk, it was the best he could have hoped for under the circumstances, it was out of the way, unpopular and had a shitty location by most standards. But for them it was ideal.

"good idea" Jackie nodded approvingly, she saw his thinking right away and couldn't fault it.

They headed to the back of the room and opened the door there, to reveal the storage closet, it was crowded with old costumes from bygone plays, but it was big and gave ample hiding places, if the team came looking there, they had a decent chance of going undetected.

They inched their way through the dusty props and costumes, looking for the best cover that wouldn't be too uncomfortable for an extended stay, and finally decided on the far corner where the prow of the 'jolly roger' from the production of peter pan resided. Hyde grabbed an arm full of animal costumes and dumped them on the ground for them to sit on, gesturing grandly for Jackie to take a seat.

They sat silently for a while, each thinking of things they didn't feel like sharing, until Jackie inevitably broke the silence.

"do you think they're ok?" she asked sounding legitimately worried about their friends.

"their chances aren't good to be honest, you don't use the most used class block in a school you don't go to if you want to hide" he told her honestly.

"they should have listened to you instead of donna" Jackie murmured sadly

"yeah, I know" he agreed, then turned to her with a curious expression like something had only just occurred to him "why did you follow me and not her?" he asked his unlikely companion.

Jackie shrugged and didn't look up from her boots "I guess because, I trust your judgement?" she said uncertainly.

Hyde smirked "and I didn't even have to take care of an egg" he joked with a bitter edge.

Now Jackie turned to him, her eyes narrowed suspiciously "how did you know about that?" she asked flatly

"uh" there was no good option for what to say "cus I'm not dumb and that's a pretty well-known parenting exercise" he lied with his usual talent, however, Jackie was a lot sharper than any one bothered to notice and had an uncanny ability to file information even while she talked a mile a minute, seemingly totally self-absorbed.

"it is yeah, except for you to have recognized it at all you would have had to have paid attention to what Kelso said, and we both know you didn't do that, so how did you know? Tell me the truth" she demanded, her eyes hard with anger now and he wasn't sure if it was for him or not?

With a sigh, Hyde broke one of his cardinal rules and ratted out a friend, but he consoled himself with the fact that this particular friend had done the 'ratting' first even while having an obligation to Jackie.

"donna showed up while we were playing catch with the egg and gave Kelso the low down on what it meant" he told her the truth gravely

Jackie did not move or speak after he told her this, she just stared at nothing as she absorbed it.

"it's not a big deal man" Hyde tried to tell her, but felt bile rise up in his throat, as he choked out such a complete and utter lie.

"of course, not, I shouldn't be surprised really, I mean sure, when I first told her I was thinking of getting back together with him she said she'd kill herself! Why wouldn't she decide to turn around and help him?! She treats me like I'm stupid for even thinking about it to my face, pointing out all the awful things he did to me that made us break up, and then turns around and tells him about the tests! God! Why would she do that?!" Jackie seethed, hurt and furious that her so called best friend could so easily betray her like that.

She hadn't forgotten what Michael had done, she remembered the gory details every damn day! But for the sake of the times he had made her feel special and like he cared she had wanted to see if he'd grown up enough for them to have a chance, maybe her tests were dumb? But it was all she could think of, because if she'd sat him down to talk to him it would have given him the chance to lie and she desperately needed some truth out of him, which was precisely what donna had taken away!

"did he at least take care of the egg?" Jackie asked with a glimmer of hope

"umm, not exactly" Hyde evaded

"he threw it at something, didn't he?" she guessed with certainty

"well no, I actually broke it accidently when I tried to toss it back to him after donna told him what was up" he couldn't help but smirk at the memory of the look on kelso's face

"accidently?" Jackie asked dryly, clearly not believing he hadn't done it on purpose

"well maybe I thought it would be sort of funny for it to break at that particular moment?" he allowed magnanimously,

Jackie just nodded slowly, she couldn't really blame him for it honestly, and to be fair she saw the humor from his perspective.

"do you think the others are ok?" Hyde asked absently, mostly for something to change the subject from the one that was making him uncomfortable. Again, Jackie merely shrugged, their fate was anyone's guess.

As it happened they were not ok, donna had led them to an empty classroom as well, but theirs was an English class and had only desks to hide under, which meant they were huddled together behind the teacher's desk as it offered the best cover.

"aye, we should have listened to Hyde!" Fez lamented miserably

"no, he would have been reckless and cocky like he always is and led us straight into those guys" donna claimed irritably, the three guys had been complaining since they had taken cover and she was more than a little sick of being questioned for her choice.

"besides, even if they do catch us I'm sure we can talk our way out of it or something?" she claimed

All three of her friends turned to look at her disbelievingly "donna, if they catch us they will beat us to a fine pulp" Eric told her seriously

"don't be such a coward Eric, you'll survive one little fight" she cooed condescendingly at him

"yeah, it's easy to be brave when they can't hit you donna" Eric snapped angrily, if she were in their position she wouldn't be so sure of survival, even a bunch of football players wouldn't hit a girl and she knew it, they would be the ones to bear the brunt of whatever happened.

"I can't believe Jackie followed Hyde!" kelso said for the 8th time since they'd realized the tiny brunette was with them.

"I guess she's smarter than I thought" spat Eric angrily

"so now you think Jackie has better judgment than me?" donna asked offended he would even imply such a thing

"she knew enough not to end up here just waiting to be killed" Eric stated bluntly.

They all dissolved into arguing then, and as tempers rose, silence was forgotten.

Whereas back in the storage room, Jackie and Hyde hadn't spoken in quiet some time.

Finally, Hyde decided to glance at Jackie and saw to his horror, her eyes were full of unshed tears.

"hey man, are you ok?" he asked softly

Jackie shook her head but didn't say anything, if she did she knew the tears would fall for sure and she was tired of crying in front of Hyde.

"seriously Jackie, you can tell me" he admitted the truth softly,

"all I wanted was to belong somewhere again, but she just proved that not only is there nowhere that I do, but that I'm not really a friend in any of your minds." She finally says with heartbreaking sincerity, and Hyde saw her point.

To the others, she wasn't even really a person, they forgot her as soon as she left unless they were insulting her. They wouldn't treat a stranger the way they treated Jackie, it was an unpleasant thought that led to a personal revelation for Hyde.

If you were to ask him who he would call if he needed help with no explanation the answer was Jackie? Sure, she'd make him spill his guts later, but he knew as well as he knew anything that if he called her and said he needed help, she would be there as soon as she could. She had his back, even when they bickered like small children he could be sure of her taking his side against the others when it came down to it.

"I don't know how, or when it happened doll? But you are my friend" he told her seriously

Jackie turned to him with a look of total confusion in her huge eyes "I thought you wanted me to 'die away from you'?" she pointed out, quoting his veterans day haiku back at him.

"well yeah, when I thought you were just using me to get back at Kelso, but…when we were on that date, we just 'were'? you didn't make me talk, you didn't push about anything, you didn't tell me how I was supposed to be acting you just were there with me, and that was pretty cool ya know?" he explained thoughtfully, he hadn't ever really considered their odd relationship before and found it sort of interesting.

"yeah, I know" Jackie murmured looking down at her boots again.

"what I mean is, when you aren't acting the way you thing you're supposed to, you're pretty cool to be around, I mean, you're fun to hang out with when you're going full tilt, bit I liked how we could just chill together and ya know? Just 'be' for a while" he elaborated, trying to get his point across, and if she'd been looking, Jackie would have seen the smug smile on his face as he recalled the part of her only he seemed to be aware of.

"do you regret taking me on that date?" Jackie asked out of nowhere seemingly, in a small vulnerable voice.

Hyde was startled by her question, and gave it some actual thought, he was again surprised at the answer he came up with.

"nah man, I regret a lot of shit I've done with chicks – Kat Peterson springs to mind – but I had a good time with you that night, and – god help me – I'm sort of glad I got to know you the way I do now" he told her hesitantly, he wasn't the sort of guy that shared his feelings, but after what she'd gone through lately, today especially, she deserved to hear the truth.

"thank you, Steven," she whispered with a small smile.

"now I've got a question for you" Hyde said pointedly

Jackie held her small hand up in the shape of a gun "shoot" she said, pulling the trigger.

"what the hell are you thinking even considering taking Kelso back?" he asked, not cruelly as donna had, but genuinely concerned for her wellbeing

Jackie gave a halfhearted shrug "I just wanted to feel like I had a place to belong again, ya know? I did try to stand on my own, I also tried to be there as donna's best friend, but no matter what I did everyone was just waiting for me to leave, but…I don't have anywhere else to go. So, I figured if he could show even a glimmer of giving a damn about me, my old place would be better than the nothing I have right now" she confided in Hyde, showing once again the trust she held in him that no one else seemed to.

"that's not true man" Hyde told her

"really? How so?" she asked disbelievingly

"Jackie, as long as I'm there, you…. have a place" he told her, trying to sound casual.

"I do? How do you figure?" she snorted, sure he was placating her because he was stuck in there with her for however long.

"yeah, you do!" he said more firmly "you don't need kelso to have a place in the basement, you are MY grasshopper got it?! And I say there's always a spot for you, and not on that moron's lap!" he spat, the mental picture making him angry.

"you know how much crap you'll catch from them for saying that don't you?" Jackie pointed out, a bit sad that such a small thing as her inclusion would cause an inevitable argument.

"I don't give a fuck what they say!" Hyde growled "every damn on of them does whatever the hell they please when it suits them, but goes and whines about 'messing up the group' when it's something they don't like! To hell with that, I may be a dirt bag, but I'm no hypocrite!" he snarled angrily, years of pent up frustration with his friend's double standard, boiling to the surface.

Jackie didn't know how to respond? It wasn't that she disagreed with his synopsis of their behavior – far from it – but to agree she would have to bad mouth the very people she wanted so badly to be included by?

In the end, she simply said "you're not a dirt bag Steven" in a low sure tone

"I can be" he countered realistically

"so? I can be a bitch" she shot back

"knock it off!" Hyde snapped, he didn't like anyone calling her a bitch, not even her. He knew what a real bitch was like, and Jackie was too damn caring to be counted in their ranks.

They stared each other down for a long while until finally Hyde spoke, his voice low and intense.

"why did you follow me instead of the others?" he asked again, and this time she knew she had to give him the real answer.

"because I knew you wouldn't leave me behind to save yourself, because I knew you'd make sure I was safe, because I knew I wouldn't be afraid of what would happen if I was with you. I didn't even really think about it, I saw them going one way, and you the other and I didn't even hesitate – I just followed you, because the other choice didn't even register as a choice" she told him thoughtfully, trying to work out what she had been thinking while she explained it to him.

"I'll never ditch you Jackie" Hyde promised quietly, to show her faith in him was well placed.

"I'll never ditch you either Steven" Jackie returned his promise with soft sincerity, and held out her small hand to him to seal their promise.

Hyde took her hand in his and held her gaze as he shook on their vow,

"so, what does this mean exactly?" Jackie asked with a frown

"it means that the next time you walk into that basement, it won't be as Kelso's chick, or Fez's goddess, or donna's last resort, you're going to be there for me because you're my friend and I want you there, and if they have a problem with that, then were going to go hang somewhere else and not let what they say bother us one damn bit!" he told her firmly

"even if I drive you nuts?" Jackie checked, worried he wasn't considering all the information needed to make such a decision.

"I'm no picnic myself grasshopper, but in case you haven't noticed – you and I always end up hanging out, which makes me believe, if we're not trying to be mean to each other we could actually have a hell of a good time." He hypothesized with a grin for all the fun they could have on their own, they were both clever and ruthless and brave, things the others were not.

The sky was the limit with them as a team – scratch that, they'd always been a team under the surface, with them as an official team, a unit, partners etc. Etc.

"what if I fall for you again like I did the last time you were nice to me?" Jackie asked with a playful smirk

Hyde considered her question with a serious expression, before giving her an answer.

"I'm prepared to deal with that eventuality" he told her stoically, then let the smile he'd been hiding break free.

A/N so there it is, hope you enjoyed it, let me know if I should continue it for another chapter (which I can) or if its better ending like this? I'd love to hear what you all think because I'm not sure about this one?


	2. Chapter 2

It had been over two months since Jackie and Hyde had spent most of an afternoon hiding in the drama club storage room, and after the initial shock had worn off in the group, their friends…were still acting as if they'd been replaced by pod people.

Eleven weeks, and not one of their friends could resign themselves to the new world order of Jackie and Hyde being good friends, but they were.

They'd found a working window in the back of the storage room, and climbed through it only to find that the vista cruiser was nowhere to be found? The others had left without them!

In a way, both Jackie and Hyde understood that their friends had had no way of knowing whether they were still there or not, but it had still sucked to trudge all the way back to the Forman's house on foot. Their reception when they'd finally reached the basement wasn't pleasant either.

Kelso had yelled loudly that they'd betrayed him – because in his head, a boy and girl couldn't inhabit the same space without 'doing it'.

While the others were still not really talking to each other over what had happened to them. Neither Jackie nor Hyde were surprised to hear that it hadn't taken long for the pissed off football players to find them, they were surprised to hear that the thing that had ended up saving their collective asses, was not donna's plan to talk their way out of it – but one of the burly line backers recognizing Eric?

It turned out this particular player, had a father that had worked under Red at the plant, and he himself had worked there for a summer – also under Red, he wasn't about to beat up the son of the man even his dad had been afraid to cross. Hyde could only smirk when he saw just how much it bothered Donna that it had been this that saved them, she left the basement shortly after this and he wasn't surprised.

Jackie watched donna leave through the net veil of the hat she'd 'borrowed' from the drama club, and waved a gloved hand dismissively, "don't worry about her, everybody's wrong sometimes but it's how we behave in the face of our mistakes that counts, my little loves!" Jackie informed them grandly then stood up and threw her borrowed fur cape around her shoulders with a flourish,

"you've got to live, live, live! Life's a banquet and some poor suckers are starving to death!" she proclaimed and swept up the stairs to ask for snacks.

Eric looked at Hyde with a confused expression "when did Jackie turn into auntie Mame?"

Hyde did his best to suppress the smile her antics tried to put on his face "about the time she 'borrowed' that costume from the drama club" he informed Eric with a silent chuckle.

Jackie had kept her spirits up -both of theirs really – the whole walk home by imitating the larger than life socialite, Hyde had been somewhat surprised by just how well she knew the old movie.

"so, are you and Jackie like 'friends' now?" Eric asked with a tone of disbelief and mild disgust for such an unnatural thing.

"yep" Hyde answered simply, and kicked his legs up on the spool table, focusing his attention on the tv set.

"but she's the devil! How can you stand even hearing that shrill bossy voice?" Eric asked, gesticulating wildly with his bony arms.

"pretty sure yours went an octave above hers just now Erica" Hyde pointed out irritably

"come on man what's the deal? Is this some massive burn on kelso and donna? Tell me" Eric pressed curiously

"she may be loud and annoying, but not actually any more than the rest of you are, and she may like a bunch of lame stuff but so does fez. But! She's the only one who trusted that following me was the right move, and she's starting to grow up which means a lot of the lame shit is getting' left behind, and when she's not talking about ABBA or Donny Osmond, she isn't that bad" Hyde admitted with a shrug

"so, it's because she followed you and we followed Donna?" Forman seemed to have only heard the least important part of what Hyde had said.

"no! get it through your head Forman – Jackie is my friend! From now on, if you mess with her you deal with me! Are – we – clear?!" Hyde said in a dangerous growl, he didn't want to have to say it more than once, so he said it the first time with feeling.

Forman had made a strange gulping sound and nodded that he got it.

But that hadn't been the end of it from the others, they all (apart from Forman) made remark after snide remark, about Jackie's increased presence in the basement. As well as at one point, playing a money based guessing game about Hyde's real motivation behind spending time with Jackie, that one had not ended well, seeing as how Hyde had walked in in the middle of it and not been impressed. He'd taken their money, and scattered the game pieces, and issued a few threats pertaining to them ever doing anything like it again.

Kelso and donna had made some accusations at him, but he'd ignored them and walked out of the basement with a slam of the door and not a word spoken, but he was pissed, Jackie kept telling him to ignore it and it'd go away. She herself, never showed the slightest reaction to a single thing they said or implied about her and Steven, which infuriated donna and confused kelso, until Forman told him Jackie was in a coma….it had been a joke but he realized soon enough he had underestimated how dumb the overly pretty man was.

While their friends ridiculed their friendship, and even went so far as to form a theory that Jackie was paying Hyde to be nice to her, Hyde found out more and more that Jackie's company suited him perfectly.

She talked a lot and said some ridiculous things, but when he countered her views, when he questioned her statements, not only was she a worthy opponent, but she would listen to what he said and sometimes change her point of view when given new information, and he was slowly coming to trust her and believe that she gave a damn about him, which had taken some pushing for him to see.

There had been many incidents that shaped their new friendship.

When Hyde and the guys had gone to the stag film, he'd mentioned it to Jackie in passing, partly to see if she would react badly, and partly because it bugged him to keep it from her.

her reaction was to give him a flat look and say "that's gross Steven, can't you get a real girl?"

"I could, but this and that are not at all the same thing, this is something guys can't help but want to see for themselves, it has as little to do with reality as romance novels do for chicks" he had explained honestly to her, wondering for a moment why he was telling her these things at all?

"well, have fun, just not 'public fun'" she'd told him sternly but with a small grin, she might think the whole thing was gross, but she also didn't think it was her business what he and the guys did, so she let it drop.

It was one of the many small things that served to slowly form their new accepted friendship. It was hard for them with their family backgrounds to trust each other, but they had made an agreement and as yet hadn't broken it. There were some times when it was strained to the breaking point, like when Kelso embarked on his campaign to win back Jackie, Hyde was sure she would give in and take him back, but each time she refused he became a little more proud of her, and a little more confident in her new strength.

Which didn't mean he sat idly by and let Kelso have an easy time of it, he convinced him to write a list of every lie he'd ever told Jackie, and to go with an over the top romantic day, and even to blow all his cash on a promise ring Jackie hadn't wanted or been expecting – seeing as how they were broken up.

While Hyde sat back and laughed each time kelso's efforts blew up spectacularly in his face.

"stop 'helping' him!" Jackie had demanded angrily, using air quotes for helping, so Hyde knew she was onto him.

"he's my friend grasshopper, I'm obligated to help him when he asks me" Hyde claimed innocently

"oh, don't give me that! I am not stupid Steven, I know all this ridiculous crap he keeps throwing at me is 100% your idea! And I am ordering you to knock it the hell off!" she yelled and stamped her foot angrily.

"first off Jackie, you don't get to 'order' me to do anything, if you want me to do something ask me like a normal human being, not a crazed bossy lunatic. Secondly, I thought it might help you to deal with a concentrated dose of Kelso, for years you built up an immunity to his stupid crap and because of it you kept letting him back in your life, sometimes you got to see things from a new perspective, you get me?" he asked pointedly

Jackie glared silently, but as what he implied sank in her expression softened "yeah, I get you, and now that I do could you please stop giving him ideas?! Just tell him to leave me alone" she begged

"are you really sure you're done with him grasshopper?" Hyde asked seriously

"are you really my friend?" she countered

"thought we covered this already?" he asked uncomfortably

"are we?" she pushed resolutely

Their eyes locked in a silent war for several seconds until finally Hyde lost

"of course, we are" he sighed, he hated any talk of emotions, but it wasn't quit as distasteful to assure Jackie she was wanted, as it was under other circumstances.

"yes Steven, I am positive I am done believing anything Michael Kelso says, I don't like him like that anymore, I don't like him much at all really to be honest, so now that you have your answer will you please, please stop convincing him to harass me?!" she asked wearily

"sure, thing grasshopper" Hyde promised casually, he'd only been trying to help her, so what if a small annoying voice in the back of his head was claiming he had ulterior motives for making sure she and Kelso were done and over? He was just protecting a friend that was smaller and weaker than him…. that was it…. what else could it be?

After that day, though, their friendship was stronger, Hyde was more open and honest with Jackie and she calmed down and trusted him instead of needing reassurance that he wasn't going to bail constantly. Before either of them knew it, they were better friends than the other could claim to be, so that when Hyde found himself in need of help, his mind turned to Jackie first.

-Bye, Bye basement-

Hyde had already been having a bad day when he got home and found that his dad – no! – that 'bud' had bailed on him! All his stuff was absent from their apartment, and there was a scrawled note on the kitchen counter letting him know that bud was gone, that he wasn't coming back, and that he'd left with none other than Edna!

As days went, this was a crap show, and it just got worse.

Hyde had barely started to comprehend that his folks had abandoned him all over again – as a team this time – when there was a knock at the door.

Wouldn't you know it? It was the landlord asking for the rent, which Bud was behind on, again. Hyde didn't have it, he couldn't get it, and with all the pride he could muster he told the old man in the ratty gray robe just that. The landlord looked at Hyde for a while and made him a deal, if he could get the place totally clean by midnight and clear out, he'd call it even on the rent since he'd be able to rent it out right away.

With no other option, Hyde agreed, and closed the door to get started, but when he looked around at the gross messy apartment his heart sank. There was too much work for him on his own, he needed help or he was screwed.

But when Hyde picked up the phone to call the basement and get his friends over to help him, he just couldn't do it. They would want to know why, they would comment on Bud leaving again, they would screw around and not help much at all in the end, he couldn't stomach it at all, but he knew he couldn't pull it off alone, he sighed and began dialing the phone.

"hello?" the voice on the other end answered

"hey Jackie it's me, I need help…and cleaning supplies" Hyde said neutrally

"on my way" she responded quickly and without question, and the line went dead.

Half an hour later at most, he heard Jackie's distinct knock on the door and called out that it was open. Jackie walked in holding a plastic bucket full of cleaning products in one hand and a mop in the other, and her face makes it clear she needs some sort of direction.

"we got about six hours to get this place in top condition" he tells her with a sigh, knowing she'll want an explanation he doesn't want to give.

"where do you want me?" she asks in a resigned tone, she hated cleaning and he knew it.

"the kitchen, while I get the bedrooms" he said emotionlessly

Jackie gave a nod that she understood and walked resolutely to the small filthy kitchen, bucket in hand.

"you're the best grasshopper!" Hyde called playfully

"don't ever forget it pal!" she shoots back while scrubbing hard at the grimy counter top.

Hyde can't help but smile at her tone, and turns to get started on the rest of the place, thanking his lucky stars that, even though he and Bud were both basically slobs, they were slobs who didn't own much. He packed his duffle bag quickly and placed it by the door, expecting Jackie to comment - but she didn't? she didn't say a word about the 'why' of what they were doing the entire time. She just focused on cleaning the place as best she could, and when midnight rolled around his soon to be ex home, was as clean as it was likely to ever be.

The landlord took a look around, nodded his head with approval and said Hyde and he were square. Hyde thanked him and handed him the key, then picked up his bag and followed Jackie out to her car. She still hadn't said a word about his situation, and when they were driving away and he had no escape, she still didn't mention it? It was starting to make Hyde nervous that she wasn't pelting him with questions under such curious conditions.

"uh, would it be cool if you could drop me at Leo's? I'm supposed to housesit" Hyde lied believably, but Jackie gave a heavy sigh.

"Steven, I'm tired, my back and arms are really sore and I still taste bleach in my throat, now, I'm not asking you to tell me what happened, I'm not even going to ask about it, but could you not lie to me please? I earned that much tonight" she tells him softly, but he knows she's serious.

"I know, thank you Jackie" he murmured awkwardly

"just answer one question Steven, do you have anywhere you HAVE to be tonight?" Jackie asked, calling out his feeble lie about Leo's house.

"no" he admitted with some difficulty

"I'm hungry" Jackie states absently, instead of reacting to his answer, and heads towards her house without another word.

When they get there, Jackie turns on the oven and puts in a casserole the maid had left in the fridge for her, Hyde watches as she scans a note held to the fridge with a magnet shaped like a bunch of bananas, but she doesn't react in any way to whatever it is, instead she grabs a pop for each of them.

Curious without knowing why he was, Hyde moved towards the fridge and looked at the note, it was from her mother, saying that they were out of town for the week and there was cash in the cookie jar for her to buy food since they'd given the maid the week off while they were gone.

Cold fury spread through Hyde's body, what was wrong with people?! Why were he and Jackie so damn easy to forget about?! He hadn't noticed that he'd crushed the dismissive not in his fist, but Jackie had.

"Steven" she said softly "I care so, so much about you, and I want to hear anything you're willing to tell me about what's going on, but fist I want you to go take a shower and then eat something, I promise everything won't seem so bad after a shower and some food" Jackie told him kindly.

Hyde nodded and headed towards the bathroom Jackie gave directions to, when the water was the right temperature, he stripped and stepped into the steaming water, it poured over his face while he tried to figure out what he was going to do next? He couldn't bare telling the gang or the Forman's what had happened, and he couldn't stay with Jackie once her folks were back, he guessed he really could go and stay with Leo, but that wasn't really that appealing since Leo forgot they were at work enough times that Hyde figured he'd likely forget Hyde was staying with him.

He finished his shower without coming up with any good ideas for where he could go next, but for the time being decided to push it out of his mind and try to relax. He dried off and pulled on clean sleep pants and a t-shirt from his duffle bag and went to join Jackie for some food.

He found Jackie curled up on the couch in the den with two plates of casserole on the coffee table for them, she had showered while he did and was also clad in pajamas with her damp hair tied up in a knot. She looked smaller and younger than she usually did and it made her seem different to him?

After they had eaten in silence while they watched the late-night movie, Hyde set his empty plate aside and took a deep breath.

"do you want me to tell you what's going on?" he asked hardly above a whisper

"if you want to tell me, no hurry" she murmured sleepily and flashed a sweet smile at him, she wasn't going to push him to tell her if he didn't want to yet.

Hyde stared at her thoughtfully before speaking again.

"why are you so good to me? You showed up without asking why and cleaned that pig sty for hours without an explanation, then you took me home and fed me and haven't asked about it all, why do you do so much for me jacks?" he really couldn't understand it.

Jackie had been dozing against the arm of the couch when he began to speak, and he hadn't been sure she was awake enough to hear him, until she spoke in a sleepy whisper.

"you're my best friend, I love you" she mumbled simply

"you love me?" Hyde asks in a stunned whisper

"'course I do…. don't know…. what I'd do without you..." Jackie murmurs falling in and out of sleep as she speaks.

Hyde stared at her for some time as she slept beside him on the sofa, how had it taken him so long to see that Jackie was so amazing and important to him? He could have made her never want to come to the basement if he'd really wanted to, it amazed him that no one including himself had never noticed that his treatment of her might not have been nice, but it was never enough to make her stay away.

He hadn't, because he had enjoyed her presence even when he couldn't stand her personality. And as she'd grown up, she'd grown on him, until he hated the thought of her not being around. On paper, they should still hate each other, they were everything the other was not. Except that wasn't accurate at all. They were both smart and prideful, and caring and loyal, and whatever their weird friendship was, he knew they were in it for the long haul.

A small smile touched Hyde's lips as he scooped up the sleeping Jackie, and carried her up the stairs to her room, she was lighter than Forman and he could have carried her without trouble for hours if he had to, and she smelled like gardenia and vanilla.

When he laid her down on her new full bed (she'd told him a few weeks before that she couldn't stand sleeping on a bed that'd had a Kelso on it for another night), Jackie woke up enough to pat the bed beside her for him to stay.

There were a million and one reasons why he should turn down her invitation, and he probably could have listed the first 20 from memory, but he didn't, he didn't give himself time to think on it at all, he just pulled back the covers and crawled in beside her.

He listened to Jackie's breathing begin to even out and felt a compulsion to tell her something he should have already.

"Bud bailed on me" Hyde said softly into the dark room.

"I know, I'm so sorry Steven" Jackie murmured softly but still shocking him.

"you knew?" Hyde asked in such an upset tone that Jackie roused herself enough to speak coherently.

"I knew something was up when you called me and you knew I would, but I figured out what was happening pretty quickly when I got there, I'm sorry Steven" Jackie told him gently, and hugged him comfortingly when he didn't know how to reply.

"anything you need Steven, anything at all and I'll do whatever I can to help, I promise" Jackie swore softly and kissed his cheek.

"why am I so easy to leave jacks?" he asked after a long heavy silence, in a tight miserable voice that broke Jackie's heart.

"you aren't, no Steven, you listen to me right now – this was not your fault! Your parent suck, not you! They don't deserve you as their son. I am lightyears more amazing and fantastic than your parents and I can't bear to imagine my life without you, I'd be so lost and alone and just…empty, so I assure you – it is not you" Jackie told him earnestly.

Hyde turned his head to look at her, his eyes had adjusted to the darkness enough he could barely make out her face, but he could see enough to read the sincerity in her large eyes. She did care and she would not abandon him.

He stared into her eyes and Jackie stared right back, challenging him to deny what she'd said or argue that she was wrong. She would not allow him to get it in his head that he'd deserved how shitty his parents were.

"you said you loved me" Hyde mentioned her much earlier statement in a curious tone, his swift left turn of conversation left Jackie a bit confused.

"sounds like me yes" Jackie conceded

"you don't remember?" Hyde asked stricken

"I remember you didn't say it back, in any way shape or form" Jackie said pointedly, would it have killed him to say he cared about their friendship too?

"saying stuff like that aint my style grasshopper" Hyde reminded her

"well it is mine, and even if you can't ever tell me that you care a damn speck about me, I still love you" Jackie reaffirmed defiantly, this was her best friend and he needed to hear that he was loved after what had happened to him that day.

Another stare off ensued, but part way in Hyde felt bad for how he'd spoken to her, here she was doing whatever she could to help him and make him feel better and he had to go and be a dick who needed to point out that he didn't say nice things even to his close friends.

"I'm sorry jacks" Hyde forced out in a whisper

"I'm not mad Steven" Jackie told him softly and hugged him again, but when she went to kiss his cheek, Hyde purposefully turned just in time that she missed his cheek and landed square on his mouth.

Jackie jumped in surprise and went to pull away and apologize for missing her mark so spectacularly, she was terrified that Steven would be upset with her or think she had been lying about their friendship to get close to him. But a strong rough fingered hand in her hair stopped her pulling away, and she felt his lips moving of their own accord against her own?

After a while Hyde did pull away to speak

"I love you too doll" he whispered softly to her and pushed a stray curl behind her ear tenderly.

"like a friend?" she asked terrified of either answer.

"like a lot of things" he admitted honestly

"are you saying this because of what happened tonight?" she had to know if it was just the byproduct of abandonment of fear.

"I can see how you'd think that, and tonight definitely made me see things in a new light, but it's not why" he told her truthfully

"then why?" Jackie asked, trying to ignore that her arms were still around him and his hand was holding her hip gently while they discussed something so important.

"when I have free time you're the first person that I want to see, when you're not around I miss you, when we do stuff, no matter how lame or boring it is I have a good time because you're there, I'll walk through fire to protect you and I'll wear a damn purple tux to make you happy! Do you understand what I'm saying?" he asked curiously

"not really, but I am half asleep" Jackie admitted, wishing she understood what he was getting at.

"I'm saying that you're already the closest I've ever had to a girlfriend, all that was missing was telling you I love you and the physical, I've taken care of that now" he explained

"so now I'm your girlfriend?" Jackie asked not entirely sure she was happy about his reasoning, it seemed to take a lot of the choice in the matter away from her, and she liked making choices.

"don't jump to conclusions doll, what it is is that I'm asking you to be my girlfriend because I trust you, and I love you and I just now found out that I really, really, really want you" he told her with all the feeling he knew how to put into words, hoping she didn't notice just how bad he wanted her after kissing for a short time.

Jackie stared at him while she thought over what he'd said.

"it's been a rough night doll, and you not saying anything is freaking me out" Hyde told her after a solid five minutes of silence.

"you trust me?" she asked at last, her tone demanded honesty

"you're one of the only people I do" he answered

"you love me?" she continued

"I do, but only if you love me?" he claimed to protect his fragile ego

"you know I do" Jackie reminded him

"I hope that you do, that's different than knowing" he admitted

"you want me?" she asked nervously, resuming her questioning

"I really, really do, you're beautiful" he told her sweetly

"how bad do you want me?" she asked with a raised eyebrow

"so, bad it's painful actually, why?"

"because I'm not going to sleep with you tonight, and I need that understood" she told him firmly

"I'm not going to sleep with you either tonight, that's not what I asked you to do doll, now will you give me you answer for what I did ask? Because I'm starting to feel like I'm going to puke I'm so nervous" Hyde told her seriously

"over me?" Jackie asked, dumbfounded that she could have such an effect on the resident Zen master, nothing phased Hyde usually.

"yes ok! I want to be with you doll, and I'll be honest, if you don't want me it's going to hurt, but I swear I won't bail on you." He was her friend regardless and he wanted her to know his friendship wasn't contingent on him getting what he wanted.

"am I still your best friend?" she asked in a small voice

"you will always be the best friend I've ever had jacks, nothing will change that" he promised

"I want you too Steven" she whispered shyly

"cool" Hyde noted, fighting a smile

"that's it? Just 'cool'?" she demanded angrily

"I've never wanted a girlfriend Jackie, I've never wanted the hassle or the reward of it, I don't do things like other guys do them and I'm not going to start now, if were together were going to be together in our own way, not how everyone thinks it's supposed to be. I want to be with you, but I'm not a boyfriend like you think of them, I love you, but I can't be all gooey and romantic about it, I want you in a not very friendly way, and I'll never push you about it but you need to know that it's a reality. So, do you want to be my girlfriend if that's what it's like?" he asked with all the courage he had in him.

"sweep me off my feet, why don't you?" Jackie said dryly

"Jackie" Hyde said sternly, this was as out on a limb emotionally as he was capable of being, and she knew it.

"well of course I do! For craps sake, I love the hell out of you, you paranoid malcontent! But if I'm your girlfriend you're going to have to meet me half way Steven, I'm not strong enough to not need reassurance, so I don't care if you do it in your own way, just please don't let me question that you want me and love me ok?" she told him sounding scared.

"never" he promised in a low serious tone and pulled her closer "are we and 'us' now?" he asked hopefully

"we are most definitely an 'us'" Jackie confirmed with a happy giggle

"awesome! Let's get some sleep now" Hyde said happily

"what?! You just want to go to sleep?" Jackie asked disbelievingly and a little offended he could resist her to be honest.

"it's been a long day doll, you need your rest" he said reasonably

"fine, if that's the way you want it" Jackie said with deceptive calm, then sat up and pulled her pajama top off and tossed it across the room and laid back down.

"good night Steven" she said sweetly, pretending not to be aware of the look in his very wide eyes.

"sleep is over rated" he said in a choked voice and pulled her swiftly towards him and kissed her like it was his job.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N so I wrote like nine pages for an ending and then when I was re-reading it I realized that I just didn't like it, it wasn't that it was bad, it just wasn't right. So, this is attempt number two to end what was originally going to be a one shot, someday I really will write a one shot….

Anyway, let me know what you think, and I have a small hope that finishing this will get me back on track with the other 3 stories I've been stalled out on.

Hyde woke up the next morning disoriented, he was warm and comfortable and had a strange feeling of contentment and safety? And it was freaking him the hell out!

He was about to jump out of bed and try to figure out what was going on when he felt a slight pressure on his chest, he glanced down and saw a slender arm laying across him? Following the arm to its owner he found Jackie curled tightly against him.

The previous night came flooding back, bud bailing on him, calling Jackie to help him clean the dive apartment, finding out that for some reason the most amazing girl he'd ever seen loved him? A quick scan of her head didn't reveal any trauma that he could see, so she must really feel that way?

She also smelled really good.

Now that he knew where he was and why, Hyde relaxed back into Jackie's soft bed and gently pulled her closer, the thought crossed his mind that this must be the happiness he'd heard others speak of, he'd always believed that people were lying about feeling this way because he'd never come close until now.

It was nice, very nice, and he didn't want it to end.

Another feeling intruded on the new happy feeling, the cold harsh feeling that his 'friends' would do everything they could to ruin this for him, and he felt a familiar rage dampen the happy. He could so clearly see how they'd react and hear the range of awful things they would say to him and Jackie, if tradition held it would range from passive aggressive to overtly aggressive.

Why did he hang out with them again?

Jackie smelled like vanilla and honey and that was making it very hard for Hyde to come up with a single reason to return to the basement and put up with the way they all treated him about Jackie, ever again. He just wanted to stay there with her and feel happy for as long as he could.

But that was a coward's way out, and even though he often avoided tough situations that was laziness not fear, if they stopped going to the basement now that they were together they would be hiding, and Hyde refused to do anything that might appear like he was ashamed of wanting Jackie.

"why are you growling?" a sleepy voice questioned from his shoulder

"was I?" he asked curiously

"yeah Steven, you really were. What's wrong?" she asked sounding much more alert now that there might be a problem.

"I was just thinking" he explained casually, hoping for once in all the time he'd known her she'd drop it,

She did not.

"traditionally that causes problems" she said with a small laugh "what are you thinking about? And don't say 'nothing', you were growling so I know it was something" she told him seriously

"I was thinking about how being here with you makes me happy" he began, and smirked when Jackie immediately made a delighted cooing noise "then it occurred to me how as soon as were around our 'friends' and I use that term loosely – they're going to do everything they can to ruin it for me and probably you too" he explained heavily

"us" she said

"huh?"

"you just used five words when instead you could have used one 'us', brevity is very important Steven" she said pointedly

"us" he repeated

"let sink in handsome" she giggled fondly, and snuggled closer to him.

"what do you think we should do about the gang though jacks?" he asked

Jackie wasn't used to being asked for her opinion, she was more accustomed to throwing them at people with deadly accuracy, like a ninja…

"jacks, you still with me doll?" Hyde asked when she'd been quiet for awhile

Jackie shook herself out of the daydream of herself as a ninja, kicking the basement dwellers asses with deadly skill and answered him.

"oh, uh…well, I suppose we should decide if we want to hide being together "

"no!" Hyde snapped furiously

"settle down handsome, ok - no hiding us, it's all how we decide to approach them, they each need to be tackled in different ways, first off is Eric. He's easy" she told him seriously

"actually, Forman's probably going to be the hardest to deal with" Hyde disagreed

"no Steven, he isn't" she told him with a certainty he couldn't brush off

"uh jacks? I think I know him a little better than you" he said carefully

"oh Steven, that's adorable" she said with a pitying expression and a condescending pout "you might know more history about them all than I do, but I've been watching all of you for years and I know how each one of them is going to react before they do." She admitted bluntly

"even me?" he checked nervously

"no actually? You've always been tough to figure out, but I stopped trying to a while ago since it's more fun to watch and see. Anyway, back to the point here. Fez won't be a problem, he likes to yell about things but he doesn't actually get upset about much, he just likes making things dramatic for fun, he won't care what we're doing if we don't abandon him now that were together. Eric will piss and moan, but if you're truly happy – he'll see it and back off, he cares about you and isn't so selfish he'll try to ruin anything for you. As for Kelso – he is that selfish, but not in a conscious way, he'll say a lot of offensive bull and he will definitely say stuff just to make you mad, but all we have to do with him is stand firm and repeat that were together, he's like a puppy he needs discipline and consistency, if we give him that he'll give us loyalty" she laid out for him almost clinically how to deal with his oldest friends,

He'd been leaning towards overt aggression – barreling in and telling them all to back the hell off or there'd be hell to pay!

But Jackie was a finesse player, and she wasn't going to waste one iota of energy she didn't need to on their friends.

"what about donna?" Hyde asked curiously

"sanctimonious bitch" Jackie muttered so low he knew he wasn't meant to hear it

"whoa" Hyde said surprised "I thought donna was your best friend?" he asked mildly

"you're my best friend" Jackie told him softly "donna treats me like I'm an idiot – and I may have been when we first met, but in my defense, I was only 14. But she still treats me like that, no matter what I do she acts like I'm pathetic and I'm tired of it. Well screw her! I like what I like and I am who I am, whether people like it or not, which is more than I can say for her!" Jackie snarled

"easy there gorgeous" Hyde chuckled "I'm not arguing, it's your call how you want to handle big red, I'll follow you" he assured her as sweetly as a dude who didn't do 'sweet' could.

"how far?" she asked pointedly

Hyde raised an eyebrow "how far what?" he asked not understanding

"how far will you follow me?" she asked, the challenge in her voice was clear.

"how far you going?" he shot back

"the woods are lovely, dark and deep,

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep" Jackie murmured,

her voice was almost melodic – entrancing him, poetry wasn't his thing, but he'd drop everything to listen to that voice.

"your hand in mine, we walk the miles

And thanks to you it will be done

For you to me are the only one" he forced the words out with difficulty,

he was not the guy who said things like that, hell! He wasn't the guy who admitted he felt things those words described! But as soon as she had said those words to him the ones he'd just said had jumped into his mind.

However far the journey was with Jackie he would be there holding her hand, the future was unclear, the distance stretching out so far it turned hazy, and he didn't want to miss a single moment of whatever could happen.

He knew somewhere in his confusing brain, that it was silly to think these sorts of things at 17, that the deck was stacked against them going the distance, but a thought occurred to him then that made a smirk appear on his face – Jackie wanted him and once she made up her mind about something she wasn't one to give up, and neither was he.

"that was pretty" Jackie whispered to him shyly

"zeppelin hasn't failed me yet" he told her softly

"I won't either" she told him sweetly

"that, I've known since I met you" he admitted with some difficulty

But it was true none the less, since the moment she burst into his life he had known he could count on her, for a lot of that time it was just being able to count on her to drive them all insane, but it had been the foundation of a lot of other trust he put in her. If she said she would be there, she would be there, if she said she would do something – even if it was something she hated like fishing – she would do it.

He had never been able to rely on anyone the way he relied on Jackie, and it made him respect her and it made him trust her and it made him love her.

"I have a plan" he told her, suddenly it had become clear to him that their best bet was to divide and conquer.

He would take on Forman and big red, and Jackie would deal with Kelso and Fez, she'd have better luck not kicking the crap out of them than he would if he had to explain that Jackie was his chick and if they didn't respect that he would make them regret it.

They decided that dealing with their friends could wait until the next day, which was a Sunday, because today they both just wanted to be alone.

He had never had the slightest interest in being in a relationship, even when he had like donna he didn't want to do anything that didn't have a physical aspect to it. But with Jackie? He wanted more, he wanted to hear her talk about things – anything, no matter how mundane he wanted to hear her tell him. He wanted to do things with her (a lot of the list was admittedly physical, but not all of it). They made breakfast together and even though Jackie would never be a renowned chef, the pancakes were edible and Hyde wasn't picky.

"this is nice" he mentioned offhandedly while they did something he never would have pictured himself doing – work on a jigsaw puzzle.

Initially it had just been Jackie doing a puzzle at the coffee table while he laid on the couch behind her watching tv. She hadn't asked him to do it with her, hadn't even hinted to join in, she had been contentedly working on it alone just enjoying his company, when he had noticed something odd?

She worked from the inside of the picture out!

"you're supposed to do the edges first" he pointed out helpfully

"I don't like to" she muttered absently, too busy concentrating on what she was doing to explain further.

"why not?" he was genuinely curious because knowing Jackie, whatever the answer was it would be interesting and not what he would have been expecting.

"if I do that, it goes too quick, it's more fun this way" she explained

He had to admit, she had a lot completed doing it her way, but it was still bugging him so he joined her on the floor and started putting the edges together.

It was a nice calming memory he used to steel himself for what he was going to face when he walked through the basement door. He'd been on the step for about five minutes trying to force himself to go in and deal with them when all he really wanted to do was find Jackie and bury his face in her hair.

"dammit!" he muttered irritably and pushed the door open

"hey man, where have you been?" Forman asked curiously from his usual spot on the couch.

"yeah Hyde, we haven't seen you in like two days" donna added with a piercing look, if he hadn't been in the basement for two days the reason must be important.

Hyde took a deep breath while he walked to his chair, this was it.

"moving" he told them both simply

"what?! Why? Where? What happened?" they both demanded, like a two-headed beast that couldn't take turns.

"slow down" Hyde ordered irritably "bud took off again so I moved in with my girlfriend for a while" he explained with a casual tone that he knew would rile them up, he and the word 'girlfriend' weren't mentioned in the same sentence unless they were divided by the words 'will never have one'

"WHAT?!" the couple shrieked

"did I unconsciously lapse into Cantonese?! You heard me" he snapped

"yeah, it sounded like you said you had a girlfriend and that you moved in with her, but that doesn't make any sense, because you don't have 'girlfriends' and even if you did call some chick that you're nailing your girlfriend to shut her up, you sure as hell wouldn't move in with her! Especially since you know you can move in back here" Donna pointed out

"okay, lets break this on before it drags on into my 'threes company' time" he told them calmly

"number one – I do have a girlfriend, and I'm not calling her that to keep her happy so I can nail her, because number two – I'm not nailing her, number three – as much as I appreciate the offer to stay here, I want to stay with her because, number four – I love her" he explained bluntly

"no, you don't" donna laughed "that's a good one though, Eric why aren't you laughing?" she asked wiping a tear off her cheek

Forman was staring at Hyde thoughtfully

"who is it?" he asked Hyde seriously

"come on Eric, he's messing with us, there's no girlfriend he's in love with, its Hyde!" Donna chortled

"it's Jackie, isn't it?" Eric asked his oldest friend with his 'you better tell me the truth' look, but before Hyde could answer Donna interrupted.

"oh my god that's even funnier! Hyde and Jackie?! Hyde falling in love with Jackie?! You should write comedy Eric, or maybe science fiction with an idea like that"

Hyde ignored her statement, and looked solemnly at his best friend

"yeah man, its Jackie" Hyde answered truthfully

"what the hell Hyde?!" donna demanded angrily, although he couldn't think of a single reason she had to be mad?

"what?" he asked defiantly

"you can't date Jackie! Not only is she Kelso's ex which makes her off limits, but you two have nothing in common and seriously Hyde, you can't go from hating someone to trying to claim you love them" she told him condescendingly

"she's not a thing donna, she has the right to date whoever she wants and for some insanely lucky reason she wants me, and also – Screw you man! You don't know shit about us! We have a little too much in common actually, and we never hated each other…much, but the main thing here is that you have no damn right to offer an opinion on who either of us love!" he yelled getting to his feet in anger

"but Hyde- "Donna began arguing

"no!" he yelled angrily "get it through your head man, I LOVE HER! And you don't get to have an opinion on that! And you sure as hell don't get to say one damn thing to her about it either! Have I made myself clear?" he asked dangerously

"Hyde, you can't just go from never wanting a girlfriend to claiming you're in love – with Jackie of all people!" donna just couldn't keep her mouth shut.

"you got a problem with Jackie? Because let me be very clear about this, if you have a problem with her than you have a problem with me, do you want a problem with me Pinciotti?" he growled

"you'd really turn your back on your oldest friends just to burn Kelso by screwing his bitchy ex?!" she shrieked furiously at him.

"stop it Donna" Forman said firmly,

"Eric how can you be ok with this?!" she demanded indignantly

"because Hyde is my best friend and he's always had my back, and when I told him I loved you he respected it and I'm going to do the same for him, I'm not strong or athletic or successful, all I have is that I'm a good person and a good friend, if I belittle my best friend being in love what the hell do I have then?!" he asked adamantly, then turned his full attention back to Hyde.

"congratulations man, I'm happy for you that you found someone to love, and I'll get used to it being Jackie" he finished with a teasing grin that held no malice.

"appreciated Forman, I really didn't want to have to choose" Hyde admitted with a bit more honesty than he usually had where feeling were concerned.

Forman was about to respond when his attention was diverted by a loud tapping sound, the basement door flew open and a blur of color flew at him, depositing itself in his lap, he caught it with a muffled oomph.

"Steven! You're never going to believe what happened!" Jackie told him excitedly, her eyes huge and a wide smile on her face.

"try me" he said with a grin

"ok, so I went to find Kelso and Fez like we talked about and they were down at this contest the radio station was holding to win a van, cus you know Kelso lost his van at the lake with that stupid stunt?" she asked as if he could have forgotten it.

"yeah I recall" he assured her

"yeah of course, so anyway, I found them there and I was trying to explain that I'm with you now and they both need to respect that or were not friends anymore, but as usual Kelso was being obtuse about it – "

"hey!" Kelso yelled indignantly, having just entered the basement with Fez

"shut it!" Hyde barked at him "you were saying?" he prompted Jackie

"right, so he was arguing and making the whole thing take a lot longer than it should have, when the radio guy running the contest told me to either put my hand on the van or leave, so because I was in the middle of a very eloquent thought – "

"she was shrieking that his head was so far up his ass it was a miracle he hadn't broken in half" Fez supplied with a happy smile

"but eloquently" Jackie assured Hyde seriously "so I put my hand on the van so I'd be able to finish telling him off, and you're not going to believe this!"

"you said that already doll"

"but it's important! See, the other guys trying to win got so annoyed with me that they dropped out! And then I used my specialized knowledge of how kelsos mind works to psych him out" she told him proudly

Hyde glanced at Fez for the real-world interpretation of her statement

"she started making whooshing noises until he had to run off to keep from wetting his pants" Fez supplied dutifully, while also pointing and laughing at his friend.

"same difference" Jackie sniffed haughtily

"so, what are you telling me here doll?" Hyde asked, wondering if she could be saying what it sort of seemed like she was?

"I won the van!" she cheered giddily, bouncing distractingly on his lap.

"holy hell!" Hyde exclaimed in shock

Only Jackie could win a prize she wasn't trying to win by annoying everyone, she was amazing.

"it's so amazing! We have to do something! Something big and fun and adventurous" she told him, her excitement still dialed up to an eleven.

Hyde smirked and whispered a suggestion in her ear, making her blush a deep red. Hyde laughed softly at her reaction, and assured her he was just kidding, he wasn't and they both knew it but saying he was allowed her to talk again.

"it's three weeks until school lets out, we have that long to plan what we're going to do, also I might need some help learning to drive a clutch" she admitted offhandedly

Hyde raised an eyebrow at that

"Kelso drove it back as an apology" Fez explained

"apology?" Hyde asked suspiciously

"its fine Steven, he said some things that he shouldn't have and I explained how wrong he was and everything's ok now" Jackie assured him,

"whatever you say doll" he shrugged, relaxing back into his chair, but he didn't miss the look of relief that passed over Kelsos face, he had a pretty good idea of what he'd said that he lived to regret but he trusted Jackie to handle her half of their friends.

"what's your plan when school lets out?" Forman asked curiously

Jackie and Hyde looked at each other wordlessly and smiled

"road trip" they said in perfect unison.

"yes!" Kelso cheered

"just us!" Hyde yelled without taking his eyes off his chick

"fine!" Kelso huffed

"you're both going to bail for the whole summer?" Forman asked surprised

"no man, not the whole summer, just a good chunk of it. Jacks and I have some stuff we need to do, just us ya know?" he explained to Forman, while feeling slightly annoyed that the others could hear him too.

"if you call every week" Forman told him seriously, not caring at all that he sounded like a mother hen.

"sure, thing man" Hyde promised casually

"ooh! We should go to New Orleans!" Jackie told him excitedly

"odd choice" Forman noted curiously

"not really, her dad's creole" Hyde mentioned absently, while visions of Jackie on a riverboat floated through his head.

"he is?" more than one of them asked in total surprise

"Oui Cher" Jackie replied with a grin

"how did you know that?" Donna asked Hyde accusingly

He gave her a curious look and answered as if he were talking to a small child.

"because we talk about stuff Donna, we tell each other things about our lives and ourselves and when she told me about her family in New Orleans I remembered it" he said slowly and enunciated clearly.

"this is all some massive burn, right?" Donna said eyeing them all suspiciously

"donna, I'm the first one to suspect a good burn, I can smell one a mile away" Kelso began in as close to a serious voice as he was capable of "but this isn't a burn, I learned that during ten minutes straight of Jackie hitting me with her purse while she called me a dumbass and told me she was in love with Hyde, the first five minutes I still thought it was a burn, but around the half way mark I figured it out – they're together and they're happy. It makes sense if you think about it" he told her with a nod of certainty.

"how the hell does that make sense?!" Donna demanded

"because Donna" Fez began almost pityingly "they are both beautiful, vivacious creatures" he said with a weird expression "but they are also both lonely wounded people, who find strength through each other" he said mistily

"wow Fez, that was a really beautiful bunch of crap" Donna told him bitingly

"do not bite my head off because you are blind to all but yourself woman! Love is to be celebrated not insulted! If we do not support and raise up our friends then what is the point of spending time together? Were supposed to be there for each other for everything, good and bad. If you cannot do that for two of our friends who love each other than to you I say good day!" he didn't even wait for round two like usual, this time he swept from the basement with a flourish, letting the door slam in his wake.

"well that was weird" Donna said with surprise

"sanctimonious bitch" Jackie muttered angrily

"what did you say?" donna asked, having not heard the insult

Hyde, Forman and Kelso braced for impact, the look on Jackie's face was scary.

"I said you are a sanctimonious bitch" Jackie said coldly

"what's your problem?!" Donna asked when the shock wore off enough to talk

"you" Jackie said with a defiant tilt of her head. Hyde had to cover his grin by burying his face in her hair, he briefly considered asking her to change her shampoo because this one was too distracting.

"listen you little brat!" donna began angrily, but Jackie didn't let her get too far

"no, you listen! I'm going to make this very simple for you donna, as strange as a concept as respecting other peoples may be to you, that's the only choice available. If you can't say anything nice to us then shut your freakin' pie hole! Try thinking about someone besides yourself for half a second and then maybe you'll see what a garbage friend you've been lately! I don't know why you even come here? All you do insult us all and act like your so much better and more mature than we are, well if you're so damn above us, why don't you get the hell out of here and go find some friends that are good enough for you? Might be hard since you treat everyone around you like trash but who knows?" Jackie said it all with cutting fury and it was clear to them all that she meant every word she said and felt no remorse

"are you all going to let her talk to me like that?" she demanded of her three oldest friends

"it is kind of true donna" Kelso told her with a shrug, he didn't see what he big deal was? People pointed out when he'd done something stupid all the time.

"Eric?" she yelled for him to come to her defense, somehow forgetting everything she'd said to him in the last few months,

"what?" he answered mildly, he knew what was coming but didn't really feel like being involved

"do you agree with what their saying about me?"

"well, I mean…yeah donna, you treat us all like were stupid and beneath you, I don't know why you come here sometimes? If we all annoy you as much as you act we'd be doing you a favor by not hanging out with you anymore" Eric admitted gently

"so, you don't want me here anymore?" she asked looking as if the truth was more than she could handle, it's hard to hear the truth about how you've behaved when you've been as selfish as she'd been getting.

"none of us said that donna, we just aren't going to let you treat Jackie and Hyde like their relationship is up for debate, if Hyde's happy then we should be happy for him and Jackie, if you can't do that then there's no reason for you to stay" Eric told her bravely

"Hyde do you have something to say too?" Donna asked angrily

"sure do" he said tapping Jackie's thigh to let him get up "jacks and I are going home in her new van, were going to make dinner together and plan our trip for the summer, and were going to do some other stuff that's none of your business, that's the new reality, get on board or go away. See ya 'round" he told them with a laugh and whisked Jackie out of the basement while his friends digested what he'd said, Kelso laughed at the look of fury on Donna's face before leaving to find Fez, while Forman laughed at how different things had gotten so quickly but smiled happily for his best friend finding happiness.

Hyde walked with his arm around Jackie towards the new van.

"hey doll" he said softly

"yeah?" she answered with a smile

"I love you like nothin' else jacks" he told her with some difficulty

"and I love you madly puddin', always will"


End file.
